Is it possible to.....

[SHO n OFF]

Pull engine codes while driving the car? Recently my 91+ feels sluggish, like when you pretty much put your foot to the floor and while the intake is screaming, its not moving like it should. Kinda feels like the timing is a bit off (judging by what my vw feels like when the timing is off) and it eats gas, not BAD, but alot more than it should. Now my CEL goes off and on at random while driving. I'm hoping it's just the cam sensor or DIS module starting to go bad. Any ideas?

 

[kevinspann]

Random CEL is probably an 02 sensor. I don't think you can pull the codes while driving.

 

[yamahaSHO]

What you're looking for is a data logger. Some code readers allow you to see things happening in real-time. Another option is a tuner (TwEECer/Moates/Binary Editor).

 

[NoSlo]

If the check engine light has illuminated, it will store a code that can be retrieved from memory.

 

[SHO n OFF]

Here's a vid of the codes it spit out. am I only seeing a "81" ? [YOUTUBE]zcmhKJV4edM&fmt=22[/YOUTUBE]


**this is with the car off**



Just a note, I recently had to do valve cover gaskets after I discovered my plug tubes were filled with oil. This problem was starting before I did the gaskets. Could have the oil being in the tubes for so long damaged the DIS module or coil?

 

[rubydist]

oil in the plug wells damages the plugs and plug wires. because of this, it will not have the power it should, because the spark will bleed off through the oil-soaked boots and shorting to ground. this will also cause poor ignition, resulting in lower gas mileage.

change the plugs and plug wires, change the valve cover gaskets and then see how it behaves.

 

[SHO n OFF]

All of that was changed about 2 weeks ago. Still acts the same....altho it "seems" a little worse. Gas mileage sucks ******** right now. I can burn through a quarter tank in about 2 hours.

 

[NoSlo]

Here's a vid of the codes it spit out. am I only seeing a "81" ?

Yes, you see it first flash the codes really fast (for scan tools), and then it displays each code stored in memory twice. In this case you only have 81-Inlet Air Solenoid. Then it flashes once, and gives you the self-test results on a few sensors, 11 is normal. If the CEL was coming on while you were driving, then this 81 code would be what it was complaining about.

Where is inlet air solenoid?:
http://www.shoforum.com/showpost.php?p=1070441&postcount=2

You can also proceed to the KOER test for more runtime diagnostics, and go to the cylinder test to diagnose misfiring cylinders. If you find that "matched pairs" of cylinders are bad (there are three coils, each runs two spark plugs), you might have a bad coil.

 

[SHO n OFF]

Where is inlet air solenoid?:
http://www.shoforum.com/showpost.php?p=1070441&postcount=2

just went to check out the inlet air solenoid. It was unplugged. Took it for a drive around the block a few times, seems a bit peppier. Gonna throw some gas in it tomorrow and take a long drive with it to see how it behaves.

would this being unplugged cause the car to run sluggish all the way through the rpm range?


I DID do the KOER after I was done the v/c gaskets, plugs and wires. Got a bunch of misfire codes and such, but I attributed that to all the oil in the plug tubes.

 

[rubydist]

would this being unplugged cause the car to run sluggish all the way through the rpm range?

no, it would not

 

[SHO n OFF]

Alrighty. Update:

Put some gas in it and took it for a drive to the Local sonic to hang out with a few friends. Car was running good. Ended up chasing a guy who pulled a knife on one of my buddies. the plus ran GREAT! Altho I do still get the random CEL going off and on while I drive. Gonna pull the codes again later.

NoSLO, I checked that solenoid that you posted about. Everything on it looked good, but there was a plug next to it (towards the drivers side) that was unplugged. I plugged that back in when I was checking the solenoid, and it felt ALOT better.